Bright Hopes and Rainbows

My little buddy loves to paint.  At three years old, some kinds of paint could end up too messy, but watercolors work out fine--cheap, safe, and stain free.  This is his drawing of a rainbow.  The yellow blob is the sun. (Bet you figured that out anyway.)

For the last few years, I have really been inspired by Angela at the Soscrappy blog.  Soscrappy is the home of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  Every month, we are assigned a new color, to make blocks with our scraps.  The first year, I only did one project.  Now I have to try to limit myself to three.

The last months of the year are for finishing up what we've been working on all year.  Today, I'm sewing the borders on my Sawtooth Square top.  They're cut, and laid out here, but not sewn yet.

I chose a subtle aqua print for the sashing and borders, and this is indirectly connected to the RSC also.  Before RSC, I almost never worked with aqua.  I neglected a whole color!  Using aqua scraps for a month opened my eyes to the possibilities, and now I love it.  (BTW, Hey, Badgers, did you catch the background print in the red square?)

I used this white-background print for the cornerstones.  The aqua print is a very saturated color, so I chose the lighter print to, well, lighten things up.  I love the saying on it:  love, faith, hope.  It's a one way design, so I hope I got all the squares positioned right.  But I'm not taking it out if I didn't!

I still get a kick out of all these crazy animals and trains poking their heads out of this crumb block.  I think they're saying hi.

In addition to the RSC, Angela has given us Tiny Tuesday this year, with quick lessons on blocks that finish at 4.5 in.  I used her Bright Hopes pattern to make my fourth quilt for the Socorro Foundation (pictured badly above).

Here's a detail.  I alternated the Bright Hopes pieced blocks with 5 in. cut squares of hedgehog print.  The border is a fun/crazy chicken print.  I apologize for the pictures, but I can't take any more, since I mailed the Socorro box yesterday. 
The batting for this quilt is puffier than I like, so I'm investigating other batting options.  Do you have a favorite?  I'm making lots of charity quilts, so I need a less-expensive option.

This is the 3 patch chain baby quilt, all finished up.  It measures 36 in. x 36 in., and is going to Jack's Basket (click HERE for the web page.  Click on Donations and scroll down for info about sending quilts.)

I rearranged these blocks over and over until I finally decided on this layout, which is not in the original pattern.  The pink pinwheel above results from 4 blocks set side by side.

All told, there are 9 pinwheels, each in a different color.  But with all this crazy fabric, the pinwheels disappear, and it kind of looks like confetti in a snow storm.

The back is a heart print, that says "Love you more" on the hearts.  I had to sew two pieces together to get enough but it just seemed like it was meant for this quilt.  The red binding is a scrap left from Little Buddy's pillowcase.  I want this to be a bright and cheerful quilt for a family welcoming a baby with Down's Syndrome.

Look at this--the wonderful ladies in my quilt group made this big stack of quilts for Jack's Basket!  At the meeting last Wednesday, I collected 11 quilts!  We have already made and mailed 21, so this makes a total so far of 32.  I'm going to need more boxes!


This week, I wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate.  May we all be thankful for our many blessings, and try to pass on our blessings to others.

Thanks for reading,
Sylvia@Treadlestitches

Linking up with:
Angela at So Scrappy
Alycia at Finished or Not Finished Friday
Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict